


A Means to an End

by Books_Forever



Series: The Different Paths We Take [2]
Category: Carmen Sandiego (Cartoon 2019)
Genre: (kinda?), Amnesia, Angst, Attempted Murder, Bad Ending, Betrayal, Character Death, Evil Carmen, Hurt, Hurt No Comfort, Implied/Referenced Brainwashing, Just as I cried, Please Don't Kill Me, Please cri, Season 4 AU, Season 4 Episode 8 au, Season/Series 04 Spoilers, That is my goal, To make the world cry, What Have I Done, What-If, dark!Carmen, during season 4, well kinda
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-20
Updated: 2021-01-20
Packaged: 2021-03-12 04:47:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,643
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28879698
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Books_Forever/pseuds/Books_Forever
Summary: This was never supposed to happen. This was never something thatcouldhappen.And yet it did.Carmen has joined the dark side, and it's too late to bring her back.The world will now feel the brunt of her ambition.--Sometimes, things don't work out. Sometimes, we try and try and try, and we can't succeed.Sometimes, a person leaves and we can't bring them back.(Or, what would have happened if Gray and Shadowsan hasn't succeeded in bringing Carmen back from the dark side?)
Relationships: Carmen Sandiego | Black Sheep & Shadowsan, Gray | Crackle & Carmen Sandiego | Black Sheep, Player & Carmen Sandiego | Black Sheep, if you squint
Series: The Different Paths We Take [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2111106
Comments: 4
Kudos: 60





	1. She's Gone

“There is one valuable lesson I learned from you. One you didn’t intend to teach.” Carmen walks up to Shadowsan, smirking with eyes filled with hatred. Her teasing tone masks the intense hatred and disgust she feels, looking at him. “Only losers wear coats.”

She pulls out the crackle rod happily from her coat, satisfied by the grim look on Shadowsan’s face as he pales. He takes a deep breath as she turns it on and points it at him, deciding that she’d let him have his last words. 

Shadowsan turns from the rod to her face, face set in determination. “I . . . would agree.” 

He puts his hand into his pocket, and Carmen tenses, expecting the worst. He pulls out something small that fits into the palm of his hand, opening his hand to reveal it to her. 

A matryoshka doll. The smallest one in a set.

Carmen stares at it, not comprehending what she’s looking at. A flash, a cry, of something passes in her head, and Carmen almost stumbles. She stares at the doll in his hands once more, not seeing the hope shine in Shadowsan’s face as he watches her. She’s frozen for a second, then rage and anger fill her face.

“You’re mocking me by showing me something you likely got from my father when you killed him?! Ha, Shadowsan, I didn’t take you for the mocking type,” Carmen presses, walking up to him. “Although, given the fact that you failed me just because you disliked my father, I should’ve known you would be petty.”

And before Shadowsan could say another word, Carmen, in the blink of an eye, presses the rod against him and turns it up on the highest setting, making sure to keep it there long enough for the electricity to kill him. When she’s finally deemed it long enough, she lets go, watching him fall to the ground.

Satisfaction fills her as she realizes she finally got revenge for her father. A grin fills her face, and she drops the crackle rod on the ground and picks up the doll from Shadowsan’s hands, stepping away from his body. Carmen will leave him there, as he deserves no consideration from her towards what happens to his dead body. 

Carmen steps over his body, going to pick up the Eye of Vishnu, and finally eyes the building in front of her. Smirking, she turns away and starts to walk away, considering this heist a success. 

Just as she reaches the entrance of the museum, she pauses, remembering her subordinates. Carmen isn’t sure where they are, and frankly, she doesn’t care.

The only person she might’ve come back for had already betrayed her, and he deserves to be caught by the police once they arrive. 

Turning away, Carmen continues, humming, deciding the rest of her subordinates can get themselves out. After all, they were supposed to be Vile’s best.

The destruction and bodies left in her wake don’t cross Carmen’s mind at all, and she doesn’t care to notice the empty silence in the area.

* * *

Carmen returns to the VILE headquarters for her debrief with the rest of the staff, handing them the gem after she finishes the story, knowing they’d shut up since she actually brought the gem.

She reports Crackle’s defection and Shadowsan’s appearance, along with the multitude of agents that seemed to know VILE existed.

After she tells the story in a bored tone, she walks up to her room, leaving the VILE staff in different phases of disbelief, not caring to humor them. Arriving finally, she places the small matryoshka doll next to her set, rubbing it lightly, and giving a small smile at the sight of all of them together.

* * *

Six months later, Shadowsan was found at Tigress’s latest caper, where she faced a miserable defeat at his hands. Carmen would’ve laughed if it weren’t Shadowsan that beat her.

The reported news that Shadowsan did in fact _not_ die during that heist does not anger Carmen, surprisingly. She had thought that her victory was too simple, too easy, for someone as devious as Shadowsan. 

The news that he’s alive simply means that she can try again, this time prolonging his death, and making him face true suffering. Plus, the thought that because of the fight with her, he was out of commission for six months is a wonderful and satisfying thought.

The rest of the VILE staff, though, seems worried. They are uneasy about Shadowsan interfering in heists again, but she’s quick to reassure them that he wouldn’t be able to beat her in a heist. 

Dr. Bellum brings up the question of Crackle, and whether he’s also perhaps still alive. Carmen stops leaning back in her VILE chair, not considering that option. If he had made it out, he hadn’t made any appearances yet. 

Carmen scoffs and decides to leave the hall. Crackle _(Gray)_ defected, so if he was still alive, he had to be taken care of. Simple.

A flash of betrayal, hurt, love flashes, and Carmen holds her head. She quickly shakes her head, trying to rid herself of the weird feelings bubbling in her, and moves onward.

* * *

“Carmen Sandiego strikes again, this time in Ma-”

_Click._

Carmen turns off the TV, already becoming bored. The latest heist she led went without a hitch, just her heists always do, and she was slowly becoming tired of all these easy wins. Shadowsan had been on the down-low ever since two months ago, for whatever reasons, and Crackle hadn’t shown his face yet. 

Carmen needed a challenge, a mystery. 

Carmen sighs then turns to her VILE-authorized phone, sitting on the table innocently. The staff had been on her case about being too reckless, but Carmen thought that she was just the right amount of recklessness and danger. It made everything more exhilarating since these capers weren’t challenging enough themselves.

Just as she’s contemplating visiting a museum to see if she could get away with stealing something in plain sight, the phone she was staring at rings. 

Carmen raises an eyebrow, not expecting VILE to call her with a new caper so early on.

She walks up to the table, looking at the screen, and widens her eyes when she realizes the contact has no name or number, only a white hat symbol.

Raising an eyebrow, Carmen answers.

“Hello?”

“Carmen?” Carmen startles and quickly furrows her brow.

“Who is this? How do you know me?” she asks, quickly becoming suspicious.

“Don’t you recognize me? It’s me, Player, your best friend!” 

Carmen scoffs, already seeing this as a trap. “Excuse me, but I don’t have any best friends.” _Not anymore, anyway._ “Who are you, and what do you know about VILE?”

“Red, I’m your friend, you’ve got to believe me! VILE brainwashed you and changed your memories-”

Carmen couldn’t take listening anymore. What on earth is this guy saying? She cuts him off quickly and sharply, already realizing he’s a threat to VILE. “Alright, look, I don’t care about whatever fake story you’re giving me. You’re obviously an enemy of VILE. Whatever defection you’re trying to pull out of me isn’t gonna work - I’m never going to betray VILE, so don’t even _try_.”

Silence reigns and Carmen growls.

“Whoever you are, you’re dead. It was a mistake calling me and revealing who you are. Mark my words, I _will_ find you and deal with you.”

She hangs up the phone call after that, not caring to hear his answer. Carmen goes to try to find his contact, but mysteriously, no evidence of the call appears on the phone.

Carmen raises an eyebrow, impressed. _So, a hacker, huh?_

She smirks, thinking this might be a fun activity to play around with, while Carmen’s waiting for Shadowsan to appear. And who knows, this kid could be allying with him. 

What was his name again? Player?

_Well then Player, looks like you’ve become my new toy for the time being._

Carmen leaves her apartment, already making arrangements to contact The Troll and have him find out anything he can on this hacker. After all, she did declare she would find him, and she’s nothing if not determined.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ;)


	2. Why Hope?

Hope was their downfall. Ivy realizes that now. Zack still had hope, but Ivy had long since given up. 

Hope in Carmen coming back had been their downfall, there’s no doubt about that now. 

Trying to reach out to her, trying to help her, revealing their existence, trying not to hurt her - all of it, it ruined their team. 

Shadowsan is now in VILE's hands, and with no Carmen, Ivy can’t try to break in and help him.

Player is in the hospital currently, having experienced an unfortunate “accident” a month ago that led him to break both of his hands. He can’t hack in this state.

And Zack? He was trying to hold onto the hope Carmen could be saved and be stopped. Ivy realizes it’s a coping mechanism for him, but the way he’s acting as if everything’s okay and nothing’s wrong is really getting on her nerves. 

Here she was, working on Lydia again, despite Ivy having already finished with her three months ago, trying to distract herself as Zack keeps talking about how Player will be better any day now, and how they’ll get Shadowsan back, and then Carmen can come and we can kick VILE’s butt-

Ivy puts the wrench down, staring up at the garage door.

“Zack, shut up.” Zack, who had been lost in his rambling, looks up with a questioning glance then turns to where Ivy’s looking at.

There stood Crackle, Ivy recognizes, one of the VILE operatives that worked with Carmen. (No wonder they didn’t hear him come in, he’s just like Carmen.)

Crackle rubs the back of his neck as he opens his mouth, looking uncomfortable.

“I want to help.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :)

**Author's Note:**

> Yes, angst. I am beginning to like writing this, hm :)
> 
> Anyways, I got this idea while replying to one of the comments (@StrikingLightning) on my other fic, so yeah, thank you for the idea ;)
> 
> I had planned on writing a different drabble of Episode 4, where I write the *scene* from Gray's POV, but um, this just wrote itself.
> 
> I originally had this drabble stop at the phone call with Player, but then the scene with Ivy just started writing itself and I couldn't help myself. I thought it was too angsty though, so I wasn't sure if I should add it. In the end, I decided to post it as a second chapter, with Gray appearing at the end, as a kinda "hopeful" ending. There's no guarantee, but anything can happen, right?
> 
> Anywaysss . . . I hope you enjoyed it! 🙃


End file.
